Comcast Cronyism

Philly.com is reporting that Comcast is hiring FCC commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker as a lobbyist once her term ends in June. This appointment comes on the heels of Comcasts recently approved merger with NBCUniversal.

Appointments like this really raise some major ethical issues. Baker issued a statement criticizing the restrictions put on the Comcast NBCUniversal merger by the Democrat controlled FCC board. Now she is taking a job with the company.

The ethical ramifications of her taking a job as a lobbyist after her term ends would be enough to raise some eyebrows. But accepting the position while she is still in office is completely inappropriate. How can she be asked to make a fair decision as a commissioner about her future employer?

There are still major issues before the FCC regarding retransmission fees, net neutrality and media mergers. Someone in Baker’s position should not be publically accepting a post as a lobbyist before her term comes to an end. It rules out her ability to act as an impartial party in these proceedings. And in the case of the FCC, the outcome of these cases will affect the entire country.